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Lady Cougars bounce Neosho County 84-69 to open classic
Junior College Basketball
spt kp Barton w Friday Bruner
Barton Community College sophomore Ashton Bruner puts up a shot against Neosho County on Friday night at Kirkman Activity Center during the Best Western Angus Inn/Cougar Booster Club Thanksgiving Basketball Classic. - photo by Kevin Price Great Bend Tribune

The Barton Community College women’s basketball team took full advantage of poor shooting from Neosho County on Friday night at the Best Western Angus Inn/Cougar Booster Club Thanksgiving Basketball Classic.
The Lady Cougars took an early lead at Kirkman Activity Center and glided to an 84-69 win.
At 9-1, Barton has led at halftime in eight of its 10 games, but Lady Cougars head coach Carter Kruger said he sees a drop off from his team’s intensity in the second half, something he wants to remedy.
“I thought we had a great first six or seven minutes of the game, and then the rest of the game, we just kind of coasted,” Kruger said. “(Neosho) didn’t have their leading scorer with them, and was able to put up 43 points on us in the second half, so we have a lot of work to do.
“That’s a lack of discipline on our team. That’s a lack of focus, a lack of leadership, a lack of people understanding what makes a good player. Right now, we got too many kids who want to do their own thing all the time.”
Neosho County shot 21.1 percent (8-for-38) from he field in the first half, allowing Barton to take a 45-26 lead.
Barton was only outscored 43-39 in the second half, but a lull in the Lady Cougars’ scoring allowed Neosho County to close within 10 points with eight minutes remaining in the game.
Mariana Lambert had a career-high 19 points to lead Barton.
Ahston Bruner and Cheyenne Hedrington each finished with a double-double.
Bruner scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
Hedrington finished with 15 points and 12 boards.
“Double-doubles are nice, but when they miss over 50 shots, there are a lot of rebounds out there,” Kruger said. “I don’t think we did a good job rebounding-wise. Ashton and Cheyenne were able to make layups. They were able to give us enough of a lead there.”
Barton’s biggest struggle defensively was stopping Ashley Grant, who finished with 28 points for Neosho County.
“We knew she was going to be super aggressive,” Kruger said of Grant. “She beat us on the boards, and she did a lot of things that we didn’t have an answer for.”

JUNIOR COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Best Western Angus Inn/Cougar Boost Club Thanksgiving Basketball Classic

WOMEN

Friday

At Great Bend
Kirkman Activity Center

Barton 84, Neosho County 69
NEOSHO COUNTY (5-6)
     Madigan Gonzales 2-7 3-6 7, Mackenzie Dunbar 1-8 0-0 2, Ashley Grant 12-28 4-8 28, Danel Stithem 2-6 0-3 4, Dena English 2-7 0-1 5, Marilyn Goss 2-13 3-4 7, Daryane Raybrough 0-0 0-0 0, Jaycee Fourkiller 5-8 2-2 16, Ashlynn Anderson 0-0 0-0 0, Cenyeaa Williams 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-79 12-21 69.
BARTON (9-1)
     Ashton Bruner 6-12 5-11 17, Cheyenne Hedrington 6-11 2-2 15, Taylor Mayes 3-5 1-2 7, Kailai Brantner 2-5 2-3 6, Mariana Lambert 8-16 2-3 19, Sharyce Warren 2-5 0-0 4, Brandy Winbush 1-10 0-0 3, Alexis Ryan 0-0 0-0 0, Victoria Davis 1-3 0-0 2, KK Anthony 3-5 2-2 8, Ciera Lampe 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 33-73 14-23 84.
     Halftime — Barton 45, Neosho County 26. Three-point goals — Neosho County 5-16 (Fourkiller 4-5, English 1-4, Grant 0-4, Stithem 0-3); Barton 4-20(Winbush 1-10, Lampe 1-1, Lambert 1-5, Hedrington 1-1, Brantner 0-1, Warren 0-2). Rebounds — Neosho County 49 (Gonzales 10); Barton 56 (Bruner, Hedrington 12). Assists — Neosho County 6 (Goss 2); Barton 19 (Bruner 6). Steals — Neosho County 9 (Dunbar 5); Barton 7 (Brantner, Lambert, Warren 2). Total fouls — Neosho County 20; Barton 23. Turnovers — Neosho County 16, Barton 17.